Stephen Colbert and Trevor Noah dismantle Jared Kushner's awkward answers on Trump, racism, birtherism

Trevor Noah and Stephen Colbert mock Jared Kushner

(Image credit: Screenshots/YouTube/The Daily Show, The Late Show)

last updated 4 June 2019

Stephen Colbert enjoys interviewing people but also likes watching interviews, he said on Monday's Late Show. "Well, there was a really interesting interview this weekend with presidential son-in-law and Victorian ghost-boy Jared Kushner." Colbert started off with Kushner half-fielding Axios reporter Jonathan Swan's question on whether President Trump is a racist. Kushner said no, adding, "You can't not be a racist for 69 years then run for president and be a racist."

Colbert kind of agreed: "He's right, you don't just become a racist at 69 years old. But Trump was 67 when he called all Mexicans murderers and rapists, 43 when he campaigned for death sentences for the Central Park 5, and a boyish 27 when the DOJ sued him and his father for racist housing policies." When Swan asked about Trump's birtherism, "Jared's brain went to its panic room," he said, showing the clip. "Wow, Jared has not been taken to the woodshed like that since he was carved by Geppetto."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

"Despite his important role in the administration, Kushner rarely does on-camera interviews," Trevor Noah said at The Daily Show, and now we know why. He explained some shortcomings of Kushner's first-hand theory of racism, but he found it kind of "refreshing that Jared didn't just lie, like Kellyanne Conway or Sarah Huckabee Sanders would. Because you know if one of them got asked that question, they would be like, 'No, Trump wasn't racist for birtherism — Obama was racist for being born in Kenya.' But seriously, how is Jared so bad at lying? He's around Trump all the time. You would think that he would practice." Watch below. Peter Weber

Explore More

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.